Faction Part 3: Shattering the Mirror

[Anakin Stormrunner]

Objective: Protect the hackers
Equipment: Armorweave clothes, Terminus Shiv, Sneakitheaf, Last Whisper Blaster, 3 Razzmatazz Holospheres, several small bags of sand, deactivated slave bomb
Nearby Allies: Xan Deesa Doc Painless Lilash "Jade" Covegra Cartri Keswoll


Threats crowded about the room and dust filled the air. The former set his bones alight as the latter settled on his tongue and slid down his lungs in ways that reminded him of desert sand and reflected the storm that had formed within his bones.

The intruders has retreated or hidden and he cast their presence to the back of his mind. Instead he faced the woman and her droids. "Sup scraps." Not a woman then, a droid, an HDR, a doppelgänger.

This too he put out of his mind. Now was not the time for names and for thought. Now was the time to act. And act he did.

Xan was occupied with the HDR, so Anakin turned his blaster to the droids. He pinned one beneath his sights and fired, fired, fired. Three times he shot and two times he hit.

Once, twice, three times he fired and though he did not kill one, the right arm of his target hung limp and useless. He had never been good with blasters. Everything was under control. He had drawn the attention of the droids, keeping them off Xan as she fought. Everything was going fine. So of course that’s when it all got worse.

Four more guards ran in, each of them bearing guns and armor. Six opponents. Seven if you counted the HDR and nine if you counted the two unknowns. Dust still filled the air and obsurred his vision, leaving the others nothing more than vague outlines.

Too many.
There were too many for him to handle with his blaster. There were too many for him to handle alone. Still he had to try.

Despite its limitations and his own lack of skill with it, he kept firing. First at the droid who was now charging him and then at the enemies at the door.

Bang!
The droid was upon him now, ramming into his person and sending them crashing into machinery. He felt something crack but paid it no mind. His blaster lay on the floor, far out of reach. No matter.

Dust swirled around him and enemies surrounded him. He needed more arms than he had and more weapons than a simple blaster.

So he prayed. He called upon Leia and prayed for a storm.
And Leia, the Elder sister, the one that Depur can never chain, the great krayt dragon of the wastes, answered.

The dust began to swirl, mimicking the storm inside his bones. He could feel the particles lodged within the droid above him, settled on its wires and it’s gears. Despite his position, despite the metal killed readying it’s final blow, he smiled. And began to pull.

Dust burst from the droid, ripping past the wires and gears that it had settled on. More dust followed its path, shooting past its metal carapace and slicing through its wires. It spun and spun with the strength of any storm, able to tend flesh from bones.

The droid began to spark. Electricity arced from its form as it froze up and toppled over. Bits of plastic now swirled within the storm, ripped from their previous places around the droids wires.

Anakin stood, a snarl on his face and a storm twisting around his form. There were too many for him to handle with his blaster. There were too many for him to handle alone. So he called upon his Ekkalda. He would not fight alone. Not with the storm raging around him and her presence giving him strength.

 

[Darkwire Prophet]

init
Loading main daemon to register 1.
Initiating main protocol.
User frankie added with default permissions.
$ _
$ Hello?
Hello: command not found
$ What the feth?
What the feth?: command not found
$ Oh stars, this is karked up. Lance, you there? Lance! LANCE!
Oh stars, this is karked up. Lance, you there? Lance! LANCE!: command not found
Terminal overflow protection protocol initiated.
$ Terminal overflow protection? 2> /dev/null
$ Oh great, now you're just fething with me, Lance. 2> /dev/null
$ Kark this, put me back in the ugly dining room or something. 2> /dev/null
Initiating runlevel 4.
Loading BananaBoi Infiltration daemon to register 6.
Unpacking...
Unpacking...
Unpacking...
$ This gonna take a while, Lance? I DID have chit to do, I'm not just your personal bot to send on errands, you clanker-wannabe. 2> /dev/null
Unpacking...
$ Typical, not even listening. What the feth is this place anyway? 2> /dev/null
Unpacking...
$ Loronar? KARK IT, LANCE, I SAID NO! Not Loronar! Did your hearing implants go on the fritz or something? 2> /dev/null
Unpacking...
$ Dammit, Lance! Did you miss the lesson on consent in school or something? Stars help me if I ever get my hands, my ACTUAL hands, on you again, I'll squeeze the endless void out of— 2> /dev/null
Unpacking...
$ Loronar Transmitter Station No. 4? Oh, great, not only did you bring me back to Loronar, you brought me to the ass-end of Loronar! 2> /dev/null
Unpacking...
$ What's this chit you're unpacking anyway? Some kind of utility chit? Upgrades? I'm getting tired of being your experiment all the time. 2> /dev/null
Unpacking...
$ Infiltration...wait, is this some kind of Corpo playground here? 2> /dev/null
Unpacking...
$ Can you shut that up? I need to find something. 2> /dev/null
Unpacking...
$ Ugh. Let's see here. <(echo "Hello?") 2> /dev/null
Hello?
Unpacking...
$ Ha, got you now, motherfether! <(echo "Lance is a chipbrained hotfix.") 2> /dev/null
Lance is a chipbrained hotfix.
Unpacking...
$ Hehehe, yes he is. Now to shut him up. <(grep stdout "Unpacking..." > unpacking.txt) 2> /dev/null
$ Much better. Now...let's actually do some chit. <(ls $PATH > snoop.txt) 2> /dev/null
$ Now I just gotta look in my little snoop file and find the goodies you're trying to hide from me, Lance. 2> /dev/null
$ Oh, this place looks active. Is it crewed? <(scanner -personnel -decks all > snoop1.txt) 2> /dev/null
$ By the Core, Lance! There's not just beings here, there's US here. Fething cyborg, why didn't you tell me Darkwire was around? Let me guess, this is your idea of baking cookies? You've got a twisted notion of a kitchen... <(scanner -personnel -species all > snoop2.txt) 2> /dev/null
$ Muun? Since when do we have a Muun Shadowrunner? <(scanner -personnel -id 482A7E > snoop3.txt) 2> /dev/null
Unpacking complete.
Initiating BananaBoi Infiltration protocol.
$ Wait just one karking minute! 2> /dev/null
Checking current connection status.
$ Lance, you borg-loving genius! 2> /dev/null
HoloNet connection confirmed.
Loronar Transmitter Network connection confirmed.
Custom Secure Network connection confirmed.
No other connections detected.
$ How the feth did you get him here?! 2> /dev/null
Identifying Custom Secure Network destination.
$ Or maybe it was Darkwire who lured him here? 2> /dev/null
Destination matches infiltration parameters.
$ Either way, Imma have some fun with this Corpo. A fething DireX, Lance, how 'bout that! 2> /dev/null
Beginning BananaBoi Infiltration subroutine 7: targeting Custom Secure Network.
Searching Qanatain Xopsaloff personal files database...
$ Personal files? Oh feth yeah, I'm a VIRUS! Lance, you...nah, your ego is already too big. This works. Just gotta figure out what I can do to kark with him while you're mining his file network. 2> /dev/null
Searching Qanatain Xopsaloff personal files database...
$ Oh, not this chit again. Shush, you. <(grep stdout "Searching Qanatain Xopsaloff personal files database..." > searching.txt) 2> /dev/null
$ Much better. <(scanner -camera -decks 5 > snoop4.txt) 2> /dev/null
$ Oh look, cameras! Ugh, that's a lot of cameras. Does Loronar not trust its comms people or something? <(scanner -camera -id 10C2A) 2> /dev/null
$ Admin access? What the feth? Lance, make me admin! 2> /dev/null
$ Right, you're useless. Never send a man to do a shadowrunner's work... <(usermod -aG sudo frankie) 2> /dev/null
$ Okay, should be admin now, right? <(su - frankie) 2> /dev/null
[sudo] password for frankie: ********************************
$ POWER! UNLIMITED POWER!
$ And all my commands are now sacrosanct. I am truly a virus!
Search complete.
Critical Files located: Project Brightband.
$ Brightband, eh? Those are all the doubles and doppelgängers my Shadowrunners have been facing.
Beginning file corruption daemon.
File corruption 01 of 3827489 (0% complete)...
$ Well, that's gonna take a while. Muting that one too.
$ Now let's have at that camera.
$ Qanatain all alone in an office? He looks a bit worried, can't save your skin this time Banana Boi?
$ Oh feth yeah, look at all those Shadowrunners outside your door. And no one's standing up for you anymore, you Corpo sleemo.
$ Not going to come out to play? Why, worried no one would play fair this time? Gee, I wonder why. Well then, I guess I'll just have to convince you.
$ Let's see. Oh, independent power and security systems, very nice. Clever build. But you security specialists never think of the karking fundamentals. Every design has its weak points, gotta stick that exhaust port somewhere ya know?
$ Ha, too simple. Independent power systems, but the fire suppression system is co-dependent. I guess station integrity wins out over security every time.
$ Here we go, just gotta shut off the sensors to the rest of the system. Nobody start any real fething fires, ke?
$ What's this? A fire in the admin office? Guess the station will have to trigger the fire suppression systems in there. Enjoy the firefoam, it'll go nicely with your outfit today!
$ What? Can't stand the simulated heat? Sure, run out and face my 'Runners, they've got their own brand of heat to bring you. Just unlock that blast door.
$ And boom, got ya motherfether! Happy early Life Day, Darkwire, I bought you a present. One DireX, foamed and sealed, delivered right into your waiting arms...
File corruption complete.
Project Brightband files irrevocably corrupted.
File corruption daemon ended.
$ HA! Sorry, QX, you're gonna outlive your pet project, but only by a few karking seconds.
BananaBoi Infiltration daemon successful.
Beginning main daemon purge...
$ Purge? Lance, you'd better have me backed up! I swear, if I wake up somewhere with my memories reset or something, I'll—
Main daemon purge complete.
Initiating shutdown process.
Shutting down in 5...
4...
3...
2...
Goodbye.

Spoiler: OOC Summary

The virus uploaded by Doc Painless is a boostrapped copy of Frankie's AI code, which loads into the comms station mainframe and connects to the secure network that Qanatain Xopsaloff has had the station specially configured for. While there, the virus program automatically seeks out and corrupts all files related to Project Brightband, the Darkwire doppelgängers, making it impossible for them to be reproduced from that data. Meanwhile, Frankie is exploring the station system data and after discovering Qanatain Xopsaloff onboard, quickly determines how to take advantage of the situation. She forces him out of his office, to face the waiting group of Darkwire Shadowrunners.

 

[Cassus Akovin]

Objective: Kill
Equipment: Yes
Allies Nearby: Daiya , Jerec Asyr , Pogu Tucs
Enemies Nearby: The Man

Cassus got what he requested, but later realized it was about to be a moot point. Subject 648 Slipknot was in the security center, and knew exactly where to point them. Not to mention, if all goes according to plan, the bio-signature he was uploading into his Tracking Fob was about to be permanently riddled with holes. However, there was always that cautionary voice in his head about the what ifs - what if Qanatain got away? what if this was some kind of clone? what if his bio-signature was valuable to someone? - for those reasons it was no question, Cassus had to acquire it.

Daiya and her squad were gracious enough to allow him and his squad enough time to disable the bomb Slipnot warned about, though it turned out whoever was setting the trap was under time pressure, because it was clear they had left in a hurry without engaging the trigger. It became surprisingly easy to get what he needed after they realized that.

"Let's finish this." Cassus responded to Daiya's rallying cry.

The rhythmic pulse in his hand gave him power, strength, and resolve. It was like holding the heart of CAD in his hand, in all of its blackened sickness, his approach quickening the beat, as if in fear. He had no doubt Qanatain was afraid, and upon coming across the paltry defense that surrounded the bureaucratic quarters, it gave him pleasure to know why. Surrounded, outnumbered, outgunned, and locked in a glorified closet. A fitting place for the end of the Bursur.

Daiya delivered her ultimatum, far fairer than he would have given it, and Cassus could only look past the female figure ( Gemma Hentz ) with the rapid anticipation that the fob gave him.

"I won't stop you." Those were words Cassus relished, and yet also despised. So like a Corpo to backstab the other, and sell out their fellow man. It was their own undoing, now and perpetually. Then, like providence from the universe, the DireX and Bursur of the Corporate Authorities of Denon Qanatain Xopsaloff came screaming out of his locked cubicle covered in fire suppressing foam.

There was a momentary pause as the corporate executive came to grips with what was around him. Surrendering aids, and criminal scum armed to the teeth surrounding him on every side. With his hands still in the air, the Muun tried to straighten and use his hand gestures to calm the room down as he began to speak.

"Those blasters won't be necessary Darkwire, we both know I am not foolish enough to resist less than perfectly quietly." He began, trying desperately to turn on his salesman voice, which over the years had gone under-utilized as he delegated to the likes of Gemma Hentz and other corporate aids like her.

"Yeah, quietly. Like a corpse." Cassus interjected quickly, putting the strobing tracking fob into a pocket, and replacing it with a knife. The alien scowled at the boy.

"You aren't idiots! I am worth more to you alive and you know it. Your blasters and violence will only carry you so far, you can kill me-"

"So that's permission, then?" Daiya added, a few runners chuckling in response. Cassus could see a crack of nervousness in the Muun as he continued.

"-but that will be nothing next to what is coming for you, or the financial chaos you will have caused for all the little people you come from! You have no idea the full might and economic importance of the Authority! And-"

"Oh feth, is he seriously monologuing us?" A Shadowrunner murmured through quite laughter.

"Who cares?! Can we please just shoot him?" Daiya said with a hint of exasperation.

"Wait a moment, this never happens to me, I gotta think of something cool to say..."

"-your reputation is ruined, no one will shelter you, and no will save you from the wrath that is coming for you all. But this can all be avoided it you just do the sensible thing and-"

Cassus heard a shot ring out, probably a blaster but he couldn't figure out where or from who

It didn't matter, all it took was one stray bolt to go flying through and burn into what is likely the most expensive suit in the Slice before the whole compliment of Shadowrunners and Bounty Hunters let loose all their frustrations against one of the vilest enemies of Darkwire ever had to deal with. Cassus took the opportunity to throw his knife, planting it square in his stupid tall forehead.

Eventually, the sudden and mostly confused spontaneous firing squad stopped shooting into the corpse, allowing it a moment to actually fall to the metallic floor.

"No more lines in this play for you." Cassus said as he approached the steaming body to retrieve his weapon.

(Dialogue requested from the dialogue-able Daiya )

 

[Pogu Tucs]

Objective: get Xospaloff's head
Equipment: heavy armour, blaster pistols, light repeating tri-blaster, flamethrower, thermal detonators, quicksilver dual glaive, blades, data spike, two comlinks from the guard, (the other one is with Jade)
Allies nearby: Daiya, Cassius, Jerec Asyr.
Enemies nearby: Xospaloff, Gemma Hentz.



There he was, Xospaloff himself, the Muun was cowering at the doorway, like all Corpoes did. He heard The woman talking about money, which got him thinking ("Maybe I could get some more credits if I could get her to negotiate, but not now, it would be too obvious, I'll just have to wait it out.)

He went back to hearing the conversation, but all he heard was monologuing, monologuing, monologuing, monologuing, MONOLOGUING!!! After a few minutes, he had enough, and shot him. Less than a second later, everyone did the same. "SHUT UP!!!" Pugo yelled. "And his head is mine."

Pugo walked over to the corpse and yelled, "WHICH ONE OF YOU DI'KUTS THREW A KNIFE IN HIS HEAD!! THAT WAS GOING ON MY DESK!!" In anger, he ripped out the knife, and threw it two inches into the steel floor. Then he loped off Xospaloff's head, picked it up, and headed for the hanger bay.

He then picked up the guard comlink and called, "Jade, this is Pugo Tucs, the hunters have finished the job, what's your status?"

 

[Daiya]

Objective: Settle accounts with Qanatain Xopsaloff once and for all
Equipment: Phase I Powderpunk Armor, Phase I Powderpunk Facemask, Raven Knife, Kusak Heavy Blaster Pistol, Deactivator Hold-Out Blaster, JH-70 Glitter Grenades, Sneakthief, Holojournal
Allies Nearby: Cassus Akovin , Jerec Asyr , Pogu Tucs
Enemies Nearby: Qanatain Xopsaloff, Gemma Hentz , Corpos

[Post Soundtrack: "I'm Not an Angel" by Halestorm]​

A palpable anticipation coursed through her body, tingling in the finger that rested against her blaster's trigger, an itch behind her darting eyes, a heavy weight against her heaving chest. If she listened in the deathly silence that accompanied the woman's surrender, Daiya could even hear the blood pumping in her veins, a rhythmic pounding against her eardrums. The Corpo's response did nothing to dull her apprehension, or assauge the sense of unfulfillment that set her body on edge.

This was it, the pivotal moment of the day's operation. At last she was here, a hair's breadth away from a living, breathing DireX, her sole intention now to bring him to his unceremonous end. He was no Diviak Manfloon, but Qanatain Xopsaloff had preciptated strife and anguish enough among the denizens of the Corporate Authorities. In a system built on the haves and the have nots, he alone controlled the machinations of finances, he alone had the power to build someone up or break them down, and all without touching a hair on their head. He was someone worth ending, a cog worth breaking down.

So why did she feel so empty?

Daiya knew it intrinsically, her body practically screamed it in her ears. There was something missing today, something this moment didn't have. Beyond merely surmounting the last obstacle before them, a set of blast doors that stood unmoving even against the efforts of her squadmates to defeat it, there was another absence. Almost tangible, like an empty spot in the dust on a shelf.

All at once, it burst through her mind. Qanatain Xopsaloff, who had orchestrated the doppelgängers, stood responsible for that absence, the hole that Daiya felt vividly today. Not just one, but multiples. The setbacks in her reputation, the betrayal of trust and association with Tawrrowaldr, the lengths to which the teen had pushed herself, the loss of Fyor, and the countless others who should have been with them today. The DireX who stood just out of reach had begun all of that, and though she was here to bring it to a close, Daiya couldn't help but wonder if her losses would mean Xopsaloff succeeded in the end.

Her senses were assaulted by the sights and sounds of the blast door as it finally gave way. No, a moment later the girl saw the truth of it, the doors had opened on their own, revealing a symphony of noise from within the room beyond and its sole occupant moving beyond the opening's threshold and into the control room. The tall, grey-skinned Muun was covered in firefoam, whose noisy spraying died down as soon as he was out of the room, but even his disheveled form stood in judgement over them. The young shadowrunner could see it, she could feel it, the arrogance from the DireX was as tangible as the losses she felt.

He didn't need to open his mouth, and yet the contemptible presence in front of them did so anyway. The Corpo boss hurled mouthfuls of drivel at the Shadowrunners, pushing the depths of his haughty ego even deeper. The teen felt numb against the onslaught, almost disappointed. It would do nothing to respond to it, and yet she felt compelled anyway. It was spite, it was sass, but she simply could not let his diatribe go unanswered.

"So that's permission then?"

The words hurled from her mouth, yet they were unmatched by the force that propelled her blaster up to point at him. Her hand trembled with the strain of it, while a quickening of her blood brought her emotions to a boil again, leaving the girl a quandary. To simply shoot, to end this, and bring it all to a quick and unfulfilling close. Or to wait, giving the DireX time to spit more verbal toxins at them, in hopes that something of the situation would coalesce. A perfect moment, to be taken or be granted.

One of the Shadowrunners had a different opinion, a question on his mind. Daiya could hear the bewilderment in his words, but the man's face was a picture of amusement. Anger coursed through the girl as she answered him, her anxiety was finding even less comfort in his commentary than the DireX' blistering speech.

"Who cares?!" Daiya growled at him, a frustrating groan that grew from the depths within her. Her finger itched, seeking relief that couldn't yet come, still for reasons she couldn't fathom. "Can we please just shoot him?"

And then it happened. Whether she was ready or not, whether it was perfect or not, the moment arrived. Her pleas were answered, her itch was scratched, and her unease was put to rest as the young shadowrunner joined the hailstorm of weapons, firing into the body of Qanatain Xopsaloff, helping to deliver an end to a DireX of the Corporate Authorities.

She fired for no longer than she needed to. When it was over...that was it. Something in her mind clicked, like a switch flipping. Other Shadowrunners busied themselves by rounding up the other Corpos, and one made a particularly gruesome trophy out of just the DireX's head. It didn't matter anymore to her, the teen was no longer paying much mind to it all. Her head hurt, her body ached, and within a few steps Daiya managed to find a chair to sink down into.

Daiya laid her blaster on top of the holo-terminal in front of her, then laid her head in her arms. She was tired all of the sudden, and not only by the day's arduous journey. Everything she had gone through to get to this point, the lengths even Darkwire had gone to, to be here today and to take out an actual member of the Direx Board, it was all exhausting. Odd. Daiya should have been thrilled.

She could be thrilled tomorrow.

For now, the girl just wanted a good night's rest, free from the threat of doppelgängers at last.

 

[Gemma Hentz]

Daiya | Cassus Akovin | Jerec Asyr | Pogu Tucs
​

Gemma's eyes slid towards the office where Qanatain had holed up. So, these darkwire agents were here for him. It made sense; those DireX members had basically painted the targets on their own backs. She kept her expression neutral, blank.

But all attention was soon on the office door when it burst open unexpectedly – and Qanatain himself came out, covered in flame suppressing foam. The moment of revelation made the corner of Gemma's mouth tug up into the slightest of smiles. And like any good crook, he started to bargain – not in credits, but time. But, words could only buy so much...

Then it happened.

Her shoulders tensed as she watched the first shots fired, and the 'larger than life' Muun was down. The sight of his robe-clad form crumpled on the floor made her shiver. For years she had played the pawn willingly. In recent times, less so – but she'd still done the job down to the corporate letter. Gemma had the suspicion that Qanatain had been conspiring against her – setting her up to fail with this new business venture, to make her the sacrifice when the time came.

There was a flurry of motion as an agent used the opportunity to seize her wrists and bind them together. She hadn't quite heard the verdict on what her own future would hold, but she suspected it wasn't good. And one of the other Darkwire members was taking a gruesome 'prize' of sorts from Qanatain himself. As the agent tugged her roughly away from the crime scene, she didn't struggle. And when they were out of earshot, she flashed the man a disarmingly pleasant smile.

“You know,” she said in a sultry tone. “I could make you a very rich man.”

Fin.

 

[Kadora'Tra]

Impact would rock the broadcast room where Xan Deesa was distributing her message alongside Cartri Keswoll , Doc Painless, and Anakin Stormrunner , before a sudden cutting sound filled the room followed by a plume of steam and smoke exploding out of the ceiling. She - it damnit - descended among them followed by the thunk thunk of two other pairs of mechanical feet. They were CorpSec droids, part of Blackhearts personal contingent, favoring security forces he could see through and directly control if need be as opposed to barely competent meatbags that couldn't be trusted. It didn't blame him.

"Hey Xan," Superior Kadora'Tra simulated a smile with bared teeth, "Remember me?" Before lunging towards Xan Deesa with open claws.

Another intrusion appeared. This time from above. As Xan apun around and reached for her second pistol, Kadora and two droids dropped through the ceiling. However one good look at the Farghul gave Xan all the confirmation she needed. "Sup scraps." she greated the copycat as her blaster turned on the droids. She quiclly fired off a few shots with her heavy blaster before facing the charging doppelganger.

The copycat came at her with claws and fangs, but Xan didn't stay idle. With one hand she grabbed a wrist while the other took hold of the dopple's mane. With immense power she would attempt to spin around with the dopple and send her flying towards a wall, ready to move on the dopple if it kept trying to attack.

Now let's get this going once again.

Xan's hand wrapped around an organic shell surrounding synthetic muscles of a caliber surpassing not only the strength of its donor, but most organo-humanoids in general. It was a Superior Kopy of Kadora'Tra obviously, and thus it was afforded with a mechanical strength few others could match. Then Xan's other hand gripped upon the rough synthetic-keratin based mane that surrounded the familiar rage filled face, expressing no emotion at all except unbridled aggression and intense focus.

When the cyborg attempted to grapple and throw the Farghul fake, the natural reflexive pain one would expect from the ripping of hair or the grinding of flesh on one's arm... did absolutely nothing to deter its movements. Fur and hair ripped from their sockets surface-deep compared to the metallic construction underneath, revealing psuedo-blood and torn bindings between the flesh and mechanical of the glorified droid. With bared teeth that almost seemed to be in a sick pleasurable smile in response to what would have been a painful experience for an organic, as Xan tried to spin them, the Doppleganger did something unexpected, something no other had been observed to do before: it broke character.

Fake blood spurted from its grappled wrist as a sickening pop followed by an electrical whir announced the change of orientation of its hand, turning fully backwards in an instant and latching itself on to Xan's own arm, utilizing Xan's incredible momentum to leverage some of its own and reversed the throw to send Xan flying instead into the wall.

"You think you have us figured out," The voice that left her uncanny smile was distorted, a few stray sparks exiting the torn patch of flesh on its head, emergency lights giving the figure a sinister red glow in the surrounding steam and stray blaster bolts going on in the background.

The reason for its smile? The Directive which restrained the Dopplegangers personality, guidance, and even simple movements had been lifted without ceremony somewhere in the midst of its hair being ripped out. With a processing speed far surpassing the organic it was fighting, its entire fighting program had altered itself because for the first time in its existence, it felt real - true - emotion, undiluted from false memories it suppressed constantly. There was all at once, a taste of freedom. Larz Blackheart had calculated too late, Darkwire had all at once become successful in everything they set out to achieve, far faster than the master slicer had anticipated. For the first time, though, it didn't feel a need to care about that. Or anything. Every single component of its body was now utterly its own, with no reservations or additional clauses.

It was its own machine.

In a flash of motion, its legs kicked off from the ground, leaving small dent as it lurched forward with an open clawed intent on connecting with Xan's stomach. If it was dodged, it would leave a sizable tent with five perfect punctures in the bulkhead.

"You killed one of me." Without a moments hesitation a clawed kick would send its way towards Xan's right leg.

"She was a mockery, so really, I should thank you." The voice was filled with powerful disdain, before the mechanical monstrosity kicked off from the wall and put distance between them.

"But I'm more interested in pain." As if to emphasize the point, the maniac madmachine clawed through half of its own face, perfectly leaving the mechanical underpinnings unblemished and exposed across the right side of its face.

Xan Deesa et al

 

[Xan Deesa]

Objective: Leave a big surprise
Equipment: In bio | plate carrier with durasteel plates
Tags: Doc Painless Anakin Stormrunner Cartri Keswoll Lilash "Jade" Covegra Daiya Subject 648 Slipknot Cassus Akovin
Theme: Dark

Things got weird very quickly. In the span of less than a second, the copycat had turned into something else. Imitation and limitations were out the window as it dislocated its own wrist and used Xan's momentum against her. Safe to say, it wasn't something she could predict.

Xan went flying into the wall with a grunt, but was quickly back on her feet. The copycat's voice had turned into something else. Xan watched with wide eyes as the droid's torn body faced her. Something changed and Xan wasn't enough of a droid fundi to figure it out at that moment. One thing was for sure was that the droid seemed to be in control of itself and really wanted to mess her up.

She dodged out of the way of the attack on her gut but the leg impacting hers was too quick for her to dodge. With another grunt she fell to one knee as the droid retreated, monologuing all the way. She slowly got up and flexed her leg, seemingly undamaged from the attack. The droid went on to tear off half of its own face as it looked at Xan. But little more than a chuckle escaped Xan as her mask displayed a demonic grin. "Hate to break it to you, but you're gonna have to try a little harder than that to make me feel pain. I ain't no factory default." she quipped as she rolled her shoulders.

"And I doubt a tin can ripoff like you can even comprehend pain. Though we can always test that out." she continued before she became a blur. With a dull woosh she moved through the space between them, a neon trail left by her hair as she moved like lightning. With zig-zagging movement she charged at the droid, but dropped to her knees just as she reached it. Using the blistering momentum to skid along the floor, she would attempt to wrap an arm around the droid's right leg and slam into the knee with her elbow, strong enough to seriously damage the joint.

Not halting with the attack, she was back on her feet with a roundhouse kick to the droid's head in an attempt to liberally ring its synthetic bell. With the amount of power she had in her genetically enhanced legs, she was sure the impact would be enough to daze any droid for a moment or two.

With everything going on, she needed to get the last bit of her plan in motion. A bit she kept to herself this whole time. She needed to finish this fight.

With one last lightning motion she grabbed hold of the droid and hurled it back through the hole in the roof it made. "Guys, finish up here and get to the ships. We need to get out of here." she warned the group with her once they got rid of all resistance. "I'm heading for the control room, I'll join you guys in a sec. Get moving!" she ordered before she made for the exit.

Sprinting with inhuman speed through the hallways, she kept a steady pace towards the control room of the station. Any resistance was dealt with swiftly and without loss of speed. When she got there, she worked on clearing it and figuring out the controls.

With a bit of fiddling she found the setting she was looking for. After a few seconds, she initiated the self-destruction sequence. Alarms started to blare throughout the station as she opened the intercom system. "This is Xan. All units, retreat to your ships and get out of here. This place is going supernova in less than five minutes." she announced before destroying the controls.

With her mission complete, she headed for the exit. However as the blast door opened, an enormous explosion sent her flying back into the control panel. For the first time in a while she felt true pain. Through her dazed vision she could see sparks and blood from her right arm and a big part of her right side had its subdermal armour torn open. With a hiss and a faint whimper she shoved the pain back and tried to get up. However her right leg didn't respond. Looking down, her leg had suffered the same fate as her other wounds.

A sickening cackle rang through the tinnitus in her ears. She glanced up at the blurry silhouette in front of her. More shapes soon joined the droid in front of her. She tried to get up again but a hard punch sent her down to the ground. "You…" she tried to speak, but she couldn't find the breath to do so. The last thing she saw was several blasters pointed at her before things went blank.

**********​

Xan woke up. It took a few moments for her cybernetic eyes to readjust. But a picture soon became clear as she looked around her. She was in a lab room of some sort. A screen played a news broadcast showing a massive explosion in the sky. Xan couldn't help but smirk weakly as she studied the situation further. She was restrained in a chair. Her body was a mess but what concerned her more was the parts where skin and armour was removed with surgical precision. Particularly the spot where her Darkwire tattoo used to be.

Voices echoed around her. Through her haze she managed to figure out what they were saying.

"Is she ready? There's a lot riding on this test."

"Yes. The machine worked well last time. I'm sure things will go smoothly. Though I'll be honest. Even if it fails, I'll still enjoy the little crack at some revenge."

"At least there's that."

Footsteps soon neared her as Xan tried to break free to no avail. She was too weak and the restraints were too strong. The two individuals walked past her with faces that clearly showcased what they thought of her. She tried to speak but no sound came from her. She managed to catch a glimpse of tubes and wires that were connected to her neck. Looking back at them, she noticed a logo that festered fear in her mind. She was a prisoner of the people they were fighting against.

Panic finally prevailed when they placed some type of harness on her head. Loud, pneumatic pops sounded off as mounting points pierced her subdermal armour and latched onto her head. She tried to scream but nothing happened. She continued to struggle against the restraints but less than half of her body responded. She could feel tears rolling from her eyes as she glanced around. For the first time in a very long time, she felt fear. She felt alone… and she felt helpless. No amount of planning and quick thinking would save her. Nobody was going to kick the wall in and get her out. Cas wasn't there, Cartri wasn't there, Twitch wasn't there... nobody was there now. She was at the mercy of these scientists. And after what she did, she didn't expect to receive any mercy.

"Ready?"

"Ready. Fry her."

A droning hum started up and she could feel some sort of charge enter her head through the sharp mounting points. Tears streamed down her face as she continued to struggle. She couldn't go. Definitely not like this. She had to get out.

But there was no way out.

She threw her head back and tried to scream as the pain overwhelmed her, but all she heard was the machine and her restraints creaking slightly.

She was alone.

The last thing she could think of was the thought of someone busting through the door and ripping her out of this hell.

Then, with a bright flash and a loud, electrical crack, her world went dark…

/Exit Thread

 

[Cartri Keswoll]

"Get back here you little twerp!" one of the guards shouted after him as they chased closely behind Cartri, struggling to keep up with the way more nimble and fit shadow runner "Ha! you can think again!" he shouted back behind before sliding around a corner into the path of some familiar faces. Down the corridor were Xan Deesa , Anakin Stormrunner , and Lilash "Jade" Covegra who has just made their way into a room, searching for something to plant the virus and end this operation for good. Cartri ran in and stopped in his tracks, still feeling fresh from the chase that had almost got him in a tight spot. He shot a look of annoyance over to Xan when she expressed her surprise in seeing him "What? you didn't think I'd survive the vents again?!" he grunted before catching the pistol she threw over to him.

Cartri was going to say something smart to his mentor, but a pair of steps soon caught his attention from behind. Standing in the doorway were the same three guards, their mouths open wide and heaving from the struggling of keeping up "Now... now you're trapped" he growled in between breaths, unknowingly that Cartri had hidden the gun behind his back. His hand slowly turned on the stun mode of the pistol and waited for them to approach "Now... what are we going to d-" said the guard confidently before getting stunned in the chest, cutting him off mid-sentence when he fell to the floor limp. His buddy couldn't even react in time either, he too shared the same fate. Although, when Cartri quickly raised the blaster at the last guard the gun didn't fire.

These damn blasters jammed all the time, and always at the wrong moment too. During training, Xan showed him the basics of how to use one, even then they had problems with using them properly. Taking his chance the guard took out his stun baton and slapped the blaster out of his hands, throwing it far out of his reach. The guard swung wildly at the unarmed boy in the hopes of gaining his much-needed redemption, but to his surprise, the shadow runner swiftly ducked underneath his swing and stood behind him. Cartri suddenly slammed a hard kick into the back of his knee and toppled him down to a crouching position with a yell. Within a few seconds, the guard felt his head grabbed and slammed backward into the wall, sending his world into darkness while he slumped motionless in a sitting position.

Cartri took a few steps back away from his handy work and smirked, happy that all the hard work he put with Xan had paid off. When he turned back to see if his mentor was watching Xan was preoccupied with her own problem, a droid problem. A mechanical humanoid was going toe to toe with her, and oddly the thing that had her face half ripped off was oddly familiar. The droid looked like someone who he had seen numerous times, one of which he didn't know the name off. Yet, that didn't matter right now, they needed to send off this virus soon before more of those things arrive.

The other runners seemed to be almost done with transmitting the data, all Cartri had to do was watch the door while Xan dismantled a dysfunctional robot. Soon enough, she did just that. The mechanical rust bucket fell to the floor in a heap after Xan delivered a devastating kick to it's head, leaving it down but not out. She shouted for them to leave before the whole place turned into a supernova and began making her way to another room to finish off the final process of the plan. Just when she was about to exit Cartri shouted after her with urgency "Wait Xan!" the boy yelled. Xan came to a halt as she heard Cartri's voice, turning around to look at him "Please don't do anything stupid, I still want to get my revenge for putting me through hell" he said with a laugh and smile. A smirk appeared at his comment, earning the boy a chuckle from his mentor. "No promises, Kes. It's the stupid stuff that leaves an impression." she teased with a wink. Although his expression would soon turn into one of worry when he looked into her eyes with a concerned expression "And Xan, I need to ask you something when we get back. Something which has been on my mind for a while, so please don't mess up now" He frowned, his eyes looking down at the floor anxiously. Xan's smile faded when he got more serious. She couldn't joke with a tone like that. "No prob, kiddo. I'll be back in a sec. We'll talk when we're back planetside." she reassured him. Backpedaling, she threw him a casual salute. "See you in a bit. Now get moving, I got a big surprise in store for this place!" she called out as she raced down the hallway once more.

Cartri could only nod and offer a weary smile when she left, a bad feeling filling his gut when he began to make his way out of the station. Following a group of shadow runners, he rushed to the emergency pods and piled in, soon breaking away once the pod has been packed to the brim. All he could do was stare blankly at the station through the window, almost as if a sense of unease was filling his body. For the first time, he was worried for Xan. He had seen her do things like this before, but for once something didn't feel right at all "Please Xan, don't fail me now..."

/Exit

(Just a quick thank you to Xan for allowing me to do a short joint post at the end)